No Babysitting, Yes to Christmas eve

Hey everyone,
Hope you have are having a great advent season and getting ready for Christmas. May your family times be special and filled with love. A few things for you this week:
1. Babysitting is off this week. Both Kelly and myself are out of town and just too much this week with Fulton county school going till the 22. We will give it a shot next year. If you want to help coordinate it next year let me know and we can start working on it in August. Sorry to disappoint any of you.
2. Reminder about Christmas eve services:
5:00pm--family oriented service, complete with sheep. If you want to help contact Catherine Anne
11:00pm--communion service
Sunday the 26th, is a more casual day at worship. In between services we will be working on a congregation wide service project in the great hall.
3. We are back in action on January 9th. See you all then, enjoy your break. I'll be around after Christmas if any of you are around and want to grab some coffee or something. Let me know.

Grace and Peace,
Phil

Live nativity and the Tartan Trot

Hey all you awesome St. Luke's Youth,
just a reminder about the Live Nativity tonight @ SLPC. We are handing out coffee and hot coco and Tartan Trot Race forms. If you have a chance to take a study break and come by to help please come by anytime between 6:00-7:30. I bet you can get a cup of hot coco too :)

Phil
970-215-9041

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Finals Week!

Go get em on your finals this week. We are praying for you all as you study and take your exams.

Youth Update

1. Christmas parties this Sunday:
Middle school party is at the Ryan/Loerch house (see directory or call Phil for address), 5:30-7:00. White elephant gift exchange (bring wrapped gift to exchange (no more than $5). snacks and drinks, no dinner.

High school party is at the Reid house (see directory or call Phil for address), 7:00-8:30. White elephant gift exchange (bring wrapped gift to exchange (no more than $5). snacks and drinks, no dinner.

Going to be a great time. Bring a friend.
2. Live nativity Thursday night next week:

Volunteers are needed for the Live Nativity from 5:30-7:30 p.m. If you or your family would like to participate, call Mary Kent at 770-671-0645.

We will also have a Tartan Trot table out in the parking lot with coffee and hot coco going. This is a great opportunity for you to help the Tartan Trot. Help serve coffee and hand out race registration forms. Wear your hoodies. if you don't have one we can get you one to wear for the night.

3. Youth Babysitting:

On your calendars you might notice that on the 23rd the youth are scheduled for babysitting with gives parents a chance for last minute shopping/wrapping. Since that has been scheduled, Kelly and Phil will both be out of town that day. Are there any parents who would like to head that up? Its a great fundraiser and easy for our youth to participate in. Proceeds go to the Tartan Trot. If you can help with this let Phil know ASAP so Carol Perry can let all the preschool parents know. Looking for a 3 hour block or so during the day.

Youth Christmas Party Info

Youth Christmas parties are this Sunday:
Middle school party is at the Ryan/Loerch house (see directory or call Phil for address), 5:30-7:00. White elephant gift exchange (bring wrapped gift to exchange (no more than $5). snacks and drinks, no dinner.

High school party is at the Reid house (see directory or call Phil for address), 7:00-8:30. White elephant gift exchange (bring wrapped gift to exchange (no more than $5). snacks and drinks, no dinner.

Going to be a great time. Bring a friend.

Yummmmmm.........

Summer Trip registration

Liz, will you send this to ms, ms parents, hs, hs parents, and everyone who went on trips last summer (as best we that you have). thanks Phil

Hey all you summer trip friends,
wanted to remind you all that we need to know what trips you might be interested in the summer.

We hope to know soon, so we can continue making approprate deposits and plane reservations.

Honduras is the most pressing as we need to book plane tickets as soon as we can.

Invite your friends on any of the trips. We would love to for all our trips to fill up.

Here are the dates of the trips again:
Honduras: June 11-18 (High School and College)
Mt. TOP: June 19-25 (Middle School and High School)
Mexico: July 10-16 or 17-23 (intergenerational)
Massanetta Spring July 12-15 (Middle school conference)
Montreat: July 24-30 (High School conference)

Thanks everyone who has responded so far. Keep encouraging people to get signed up.

Grace and Peace,
Phil Brown
970-215-9041

December Schedule at St. Luke's

Merry Advent to you all,
December is a bit different because of all the awesome family events at St. Luke's. Here's what's up if you are a teenager:
December 5: Happy birthday Jesus help during Sunday school hour. come to the great hall and stationing the Tartan Trot table in the lobby.
     Toys for Tots in the evening. We will help sort the toys and get them into the right place. When we are done we'll head to Village Burger for dinner, bring some money. Parents, we may need a couple to
      help drive if you can. Meet at church at 5:00. We will be back to church around 7:00pm.

December 8: Stop Hunger Now, the whole church will be packing 10,000 meals together. It s a great evening Dinner 6:00-6:30, project from 6:30-7:30. all ages can participate in this event. Register at the front desk for dinner.

December 12: Sunday school in the morning. Youth Christmas Parties: Middle School party at Katie Ryan's house (Mark Ryan and Kay Loerch are her parents) 5:30-7:00. High School party is at the home of Clarice Reid (Mary and Art are her parents) 7:00-8:30. We will have a white elephant gift exchange at each ($5 max), some holiday games, and some snacks and stuff. Any questions, want to help, bring some snack, help carpool, etc email Phil. philbrown@slpres.org

December 16: Live nativity. We need your help if you can come play a part we would love to have you. Youth we will have a Tartan Trot table there with coffee and hot coco. We need your help at the table.

December 19: no youth connection in the evening. Lessons and Carols service starts at 5:00.

That's all the youth specific stuff. Of course there are a lot more events going on. Check your bulletin insert for all the details.

As always, if you have any questions please let me know.

Grace and Peace,
Phil Brown
970-215-9041
philbrown@slpres.org

Summer trip info needed, HS late night, Sunday night

Hey everone, a lot going on in the next few weeks.

1. The High School lockin has been moved to a late night thing. We will still start at 8:00pm and then end at 1:30am. We will take everyone home around then. bring a friend and $10 for pizza and supplies. Parents we could use all the help we can get, even for an hour or two would be awesome.

2. Reminder about summer trips, December 1st is the deadline for letting us know what your are interested in going on. If you want to go to HONDURAS we need to know ASAP. Flights are filling up already.

3. WOW this Sunday. Come on Sunday morning during the Sunday School hour so you can help.

4. Want to wear your Tartan Trot sweatshirt to church? come and man the table in the lobby from 9:00-9:30 and from 10:30-11:00. We need people every Sunday. It's simple, take sweat shirt and fleece orders and hand out race registration forms. This is how you can help the Tartan Trot be successful. If you plan on going on a trip next year you should take at least one Sunday.

Thanks,
Phil
970-215-9041

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High School Lock-in Time Change

Hey everyone,
A slight change of plans for the High School lock in this weekend. We have had to push the evening back a few hours. We will still start at 8:00pm but will end around 1:30 and then we will take everyone home. Youth should be home around 2:00. It's going to be a great evening. Bring a friend and $10 for food and supplies. See everyone Saturday night.

Phil
970-215-9041

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High School Lock-in Help needed

hey all you High School Parents,

Reminder that this Saturday is the High School Lock-in/overnight for your high school students. We need your help! Your high schoolers are super excited about this evening but we can't do it unless we get enough adults to stick around for the night. Kelly has to be out of town this weekend so that just leaves me and one advisor that has committed for a partail chunk of the evening. This is not enough. We need at least 4 adults around at all times. If you can make it work this weekend I would love the help.

here are some ways you could help:
Stay the night, bring a cot, and take a sleeping shift and an awake shift. or
sign up for a shift 7:30-10:00, 10:00-12:00, 12:00-2:00, etc...
Also, if a few of you would be willing to coordinate breakfast that would be super too.

Please let me know ASAP.
Grace and Peace,
Phil Brown
970-215-9041
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Sunday night: 5:30-7:30 dinner and fun

Here's what's going on in the next couple weeks for St. Luke's Youth
1. Sunday night 5:30-7:30, normal Sunday night with some special guests. Bring a friend.
2. Next weekend is the High School overnight at church, starts at 8:00PM Saturday pick up 7:00am on Sunday ($10/person to cover snacks and activities.)
Parents we need some help throughout the night chaperoning. If you can take a shift that would be great: 8:00-10:00, 10:00-12:00, 12:00-2:00, and someone to bring/cook breakfast in the morning. I think we can handle the 2:00-5:00 stuff.
High Schoolers still need some help planning this, what things do you want to do?

Hope you have a great week. Thanks for all of you who helped with all the great service projects this last month. We had a great time at the Requiem for the Homeless, and a Saturday morning at Interfaith Outreach Home.

As always, if you have any questions let Phil know.
Grace and Peace,
Phil Brown
970-215-9041
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SATURDAY Service day, Sunday night late start

1. On your handy dandy calendars it says we are going to have a service day this Saturday. It's TRUE. We are headed to IOH (Interfaith Outreach Home, 5200 A Buford Hwy; Doraville, GA 30340) and help them get some things cleaned up and play with the kids there. We'll have pizza there too.
When: meet at church at 10:30AM, parents if you can drive that'd be super we will return around 1:30.

2. Also, on the 21st of November we are looking to have a High School Overnight/Lock-in thing. Any of you High School youth want to help plan it? (We had a retreat scheduled that weekend but think this might be easier for you all with your busy schedules).

3. Finally, Sunday night is a late start because of a scheduled concert at church. The concert has been canceled but we are sticking with our published schedule. Youth Choir 5:30, Youth Connection starts at 6:30PM ends at 8:00PM. We will be playing lots of games Sunday night. No dinner either. Just a fun filled evening together.

Phil Brown
970-215-9041
philbrown@slpres.org

Requiem Report

Monday night was a powerful night for Atlanta and we were part of it. 8 faithful St. Luke's members partnered with St. Philip's Cathedral in buckhead to help serve dinner to around 500 homeless from the city. Then we all worshiped and celebrated communion together. During the service the names of those who died on the streets last year were read and presented on crosses then placed in the chancel. Really a powerful evening. Thanks everyone who traveled with us. Sara, Clair, and Ross you are awesome!

St. Luke's Youth Update

We have a great few weeks coming up at St. Luke's! Here's what's going on:
1. Prayer buddies: continue to pray for your prayer buddies. If you don't have one, you are being paired up and will know who you are praying for soon.
2. Thanks for everyone who came to Trunk n Treat on a stormy evening. It was a great success and a lot of fun.
3. NO YOUTH CONNECTION THIS SUNDAY evening, have a safe and fun Halloween.
4. Homeless Requiem at St. Philips Cathedral is MONDAY night. Come on by anytime after 3. If you want to help serve dinner to the guests for the evening come at 5:00 or after. The worship service remembering the homeless who have died starts at 7:00pm. It s a great evening. Let phil know if you are coming so that we can organize rides. We'll be back around 9:00-9:30PM.
5. Saturday November 6 is a service day for us. Meet at church at 10:30AM. We will be helping our partner Interfaith Outreach Home (IOH) during the day. We'll have pizza for lunch and be back to church about 1:30 or so. Parent's if you can drive let Phil know. Also, IOH needs any supplies of the art/school variety. If you have some old stuff in good condition lying around and can bring it with you that would be great. (The rake and run has been canceled for now)
6. Sunday November 7 we will start late and go from 6:30-8:00, no dinner. Come for some great games and a whole lot of fun that night.

whew, that's it for now! A lot going on in the next couple weeks, please check your calendars or the online calendars. We've had a great fall so far let's keep it up.

Grace and Peace,
Phil

$68,000 for college

Hey all you seniors,

Thought you would like to know that I have a bunch of PC(USA) related college info, including an offer worth $68,000 for Westminster College in New Williamington, PA.

I know we are in the crunch time, but if you want to come look through the info I have come on by and you can see it all. There are a lot of scholarships out there for PC(USA) members.

talk to you soon,
Phil Brown

Trunk N Treat

It's a spooky overcast day, perfect for Trunk N Treat at St. Luke's. Just a reminder about the festivities this evening. Youth if you have volunteered to help (or still would like to) please come to church by 4:30 or so. We can use all the help we can get. Come in costume and get ready for some chick-fil-a for dinner.

There's a rain plan too.

See you tonight for a spooktacular evening,
Phil Brown

Trunk n Treat

It's that time of year again, get the costumes out and get ready for the week that keeps the dentists in business. 

Want to have a great time on Wednesday night (Oct 27)? You can help us run the "scary maze" for the little ones. sure to be a great time and have some fun too. if you can come let phil (philbrown@slpres.org) know. If you have a mask please bring it (nothing too bloody or scary). The youth (and really whoever) will be manning a new maze in the scout hut. please be here by 4:30 if you want to help. The maze will close about 5:45. Also we need on special volunteer to sit at a table the whole time. if that is you let me know that too. 

Also, if you want chick-fil-a Wednesday tickets are $5 that includes all the goods. 

As always, if you have any questions let me know.

 

Grace and Peace, 

Phil Brown

970-215-9041

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Trunk n Treat, Homeless Requiem, Commitment info

A few things going on at St. Luke's in the next few weeks:
1. Sunday Night: Some high schoolers are headed to Druid Hills Night Shelter to serve dinner. There are still a few spots open if you would like to go. Let ShannonDill@slpres.org know. She is coordinating the dinner. The rest of us will be at church for a late start 6:30-8:00PM NO DINNER but plenty of fun and some great time connecting.
2. Sunday October 31 is commitment Sunday. Everyone will be handing in their pledge cards in worship that day. Children, youth, and adults have their own cards to fill out. The Youth ones are attached and they have been handed out during youth group and Sunday School too. Please read it carefully and prayerfully consider how you might commit to the ministry of St. Luke's.
3. Monday November 1 we will head to the St. Philip's Cathedral for the Requiem for the Homeless. About 500 homeless come for dinner and worship remembering all those who have died on the streets in the last year. We will help serve dinner, clean up, and attend the service. Its a powerful evening. Everyone is invited. The earliest shift starts at 5:00PM, but we'll take ya whenever you can get there. Sign up in the lobby, or email Phil at philbrown@slpres.org. Leave church about 4:30 in the evening and return around 10:00 if you want to carpool.

that's it for now. as always, let Phil know if you have any questions.

Grace and Peace,
Phil Brown
970-215-9041

Sunday Night: One Event and MS at church

Here's what's up this weekend at St. Luke's:
1. North Spring's and Dunwoody's Homecoming are this weekend. Please pray for everyone involved at those events.
2. Saturday morning Six Star Refugee Needs some help moving an apartment. If you have an hour to give on Saturday morning about 10:30-11:30 or so it would be great. Contact Ellen Womack: 770-913-0314 or epwormack@bellsouth.net
3. Sunday Night:
Middle School at church 5:30-7:30 normal night
High School: Grab a friend and join hundreds of other youth from Dunwoody at North Atlanta Church of Christ, for the ONE worship event. starts at 5:00PM pick up there around 8:00 after dinner. Dinner provided by Shane's Rib Shack. Parents if you want to help let Phil know, we still have some volunteer spots to be filled.

Have a great weekend.

As always, let me know if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.
Grace and Peace
Phil
970-215-9041

St. Luke's High School Parents

Hey all you high school parents,

In the next few weeks there are a few special things happening just for high school students. Wanted to keep you all updated as best that I can and we need some help on a few things too.

1. On the 17th, all the churches of Dunwoody are coming together for a night of worship for High School students to celebrate being One in Christ. We are expecting  400-500 students to come for this great night. We need your help. If you can give some time to help us set-up, manage a booth, help serve dinner (Shane's Rib Shack is donating the dinner!), or help clean up, it would be great! Let me know if you have a few hours. Volunteers would need to be to the North Atlanta Church of Christ about 4:00PM on Sunday (or sometime that evening). Also, St. Luke's is donating some individual bags of chips. If you are able to drop a box of them off in my office this week that would be great too. It's an awesome night and going to be a ton of fun. www.one.gutensite.com for more info.

Where: North Atlanta Church of Christ (on Robert's Road)
When: Volunteer meeting 4:00PM, Event starts at 5:00PM ends around 8:00PM
Cost: Free, but we need some help. T-Shirts are $5.

2. On the Thursday 21st, the LeFont Theater will be showing a documentary called Race to Nowhere about how hard we push our kids to be the greatest. If you want to go you can order tickets at http://www.racetonowhere.com/. The director will be there for a Question and Answer session too. Unfortunately, I will not be able to go, but would love to hear about it. There are two of you already on board, that I know of.

3. On the 24th, the High School Students are headed to Druid Hills Night Shelter to serve dinner. This is a fantastic opportunity to serve. We need a few more parents to help us get there and to help coordinate the meal. We could also use a few more youth to go to. It's a great way to spend an evening together in service. We could handle about 10 more people. Please let me know if you are interested or can help in anyway ASAP.

Thanks for all you do as families for the ministry at St. Luke's we are off to a great start this year! As always let me know if you have any questions, concerns, celebrations, and hopes you would like to share.

Grace and Peace,
Phil Brown
970-215-9041
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This e-mail and any attachments are confidential and may be protected by legal privilege.  If you are not the intended recipient, be aware that any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of this e-mail or any attachment is prohibited.  If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify us immediately by returning it to the sender and delete this copy from your system.  Thank you for your cooperation.

Summer Recap

Summer is so much fun at St. Luke’s! You may have noticed we were not around much. We were off on our adventures through the world.

It started with Mt. TOP in central Tennessee where we helped the people of Grundy County with home repair, yard work, and gave the kids of the county a day camp for the week. We joined about 130 other people from around the country. After Mt. TOP we headed to Mexico for two weeks where St. Luke’s built three houses for families who lived in shacks. After Mexico we headed to the mountains of Virginia for a middle school conference at Massanetta Springs Conference Center. This was a great three days of fun, study, and service with about 200 other people from around the south east. After Massanetta Springs it was time for 5000 high school students to descend upon Purdue University for the Presbyterian Youth Triennium. Four St. Luke’s youth ventured into this Presbyterian celebration. They had a wonderful time and can’t wait to bring even more people in the next three years. Our own Meredith Loftis led a small group for the conference too.

Whew, who’s tired? We are, but it is a great tired. We had a blast. We could not have done it all without the great support from our adult advisors and drivers, St. Luke’s prayers and support, and funding from the Tartan Trot. Across all the trips, 51 youth and young adults traveled with ten adults around North America. Relationships with Christ and each other were made, deepened, and are now growing into lives of faith. For more information, pictures, and stories please visit www.slpres.org.

St. Luke's (plus one)

The tri-wizard-tournament

This place is AWESOME! This week we are learning the story of Esther. If you haven't read it lately, it's a story filled with intrigue, plot twists, character transition, heroic action, and clearly the work of God. The them: "For Such A Time As This" stems from the verses in chapter 4. God has put us here for this time to take action to make the world a better place.

We are having a great time. Everyone is safe and meeting lots of new friends from around the world. We'll see y'all tomorrow night. Late. Triennium really is a special place. We can't wait to tell you all about it!

Phil Brown

Dear 5000 of my closest friends

I'm sooooo excited to have finally made it to purdue. What an exciting place it is. Here's a picture of us at opening worship. Can you believe we waited outside worship just to get a good seat? It's really great here. I am having a blast in my small group too. This whole Esther person sounds pretty cool. I can't wait to talk more about her. Well gotta go. Talk to you later. Phil

Triennium

The Presbyterian youth triennium starts today. Our youth loaded a bus early this morning headed for purdue university. Where over 5000 high school students from around the world will gather to experience God in new and exciting ways. We'll keep you updated as we go along.

Also our own Meredith loftis and phil brown are serving as small group leaders this week.

Keep everyone in your prayers.

Grace, peace, and love,
Filepe

Running a bit behind

We've hit some traffic. Looks like we will be back sometime around 9:45 or so. Hopefully, not too much more. We will call when we are getting close. Happy travels.

Phil Brown

one more picture for ya

The St. Luke's crew after last night food frenzy, dressed in our always fashionable hair nets.

Peace Love and Netta!

we're a little over half way through our time in Virginia and everyone is having a great time! The sun is out, things are heating up, and smiles are gleaming.

Last night we packed food for an organization called "STOP Hunger Now!" In a little over 35 minutes we packed enough food for 66,000 meals. 11,000 bags of rice, protein, vitamins, and vegetables were packed, weighed, sealed, and packed to ship.

We have and great worship, encounter groups (small groups), fun outside, and back home devotions.

This afternoon we are getting geared up for some crazy "Hair Don'ts" and a giant slip n' slide.

TTFN (ta ta for now)
Phil

When I say "massa..."

you say "netta"

we are having a great time on our first two days at the Massanetta Spring's middle school conference in Virginia. The drive was easy and uneventful (the kind we like). our 11 girls are always excited and have jumped in with both feet. Tonight we packed 11,000 meals. (pictures to come). This is an amazing feat!

More thanks to Mary Guerrant and Kay Leorch. They have done a fantastic job. They have already gone well above and beyond the call of duty. We are blessed to have them along for the ride.

I'll try to get some pictures up soon. we don't have great internet access here, so it might not bee soon.

ta ta for now (TTFN)
Phil

una casa mas!!

Today was a day of great celebration. One more family in piedras negras has a house to sleep in tonight. They will not have to worry about the rain showers anymore, the freezing cold, or the theft of stuff. They have a durable and safe house in wich to live.

It doesn't seem that long ago that we were staring at a concrete pad with the outline of some walls on it. Now it is a house that quickly is becoming a home. During the dedication, the father, Jaime, read a note saying thank you to us all for our smiles, tirless work and love we showed him. He also added that if we are ever back in Piedras his new house is open to us.

More than just a house was built this week. Firendships were made, despite the languages, cultures, and economic differences between us. Deep connections happen when we help each other with simple things like putting a roof over our heads. As the rain poured down today (see picture), it was a not-so-subtle reinforcement of just how important this house is to this family. They now really do have a dry place to be.

Also, it was a great week to see some of St. Luke's own working in their elements. Alex Whictomb (daughter of Marty and Brad spent summers coming with St. Luke's to build and this week she told us how to build. She did a fantastic job! Everyone should be proud of her. Jon Martin, our other St. Luke's grown is the construction director for CPC. He also did a great job. It is really awesome to hear their stories of growing up doing mission work and how much it changed their lives. Watching them work reminds me of just how important the work the church does to help others is. This is why tartan trot is so crucial to supporting the mission goals of St. Luke's.

St. Luke's should be proud of all their youth. They put in a great week of work not ever complaining and always eager to serve. God was with us.

Tomorrow we will travel back to GA and try to readjust our lives, and will hold CPC and the family we worked with in our hearts forever.

adios,
filepe

"The roof, the roof, the roof is on...

...the house!"

This morning's adventure was to put the 240 pound roof panels on the house...by hand... in the sun... up cinder block steps...down the width of the house. And we did it. it took all of us, but the roof came into place with precision and no injuries. The roof was secured. The holes filled in with block pieces and concrete.

The mother/wife of the family said, with tears down her face, "Now I don't have to worry about my family being cold, or about the rain getting in our house." It's amazing how much a simple roof can mean to a family.

During our daily siesta, a deluge hit the city. The sky opened up and let the water flow. We were a little late getting back to the house. By the grace of God, the storms continued to go around us and we were able to SBC (see other post) the entire outside of the house. Tomorrow we have a little touch up and clean up around the house. We will dedicate the house as well.

A great week so far and we are looking to end strong.

thanks for all your prayers, please keep them coming.

filepe

Wednesday

Instructiones para uno 'bond beam'
"put your outer course on the seat then tie it to said seat so that your inner course will not touch the outer course. then you need to place the connecting rods together in your u-blocks, that you have set accordingly to your block line. be sure to pour the E-Wall first. into your u-blocks.

Safety notes: 1. block caps go on connecting block stacks to tie the two together. 2. buckets of mescla are really heavy, be sure to lift them high above your heads. 3. stay on the scaffolding. 4. Drink your quick fix!

alright everyone got it? understand completely? Let's start putting the most important part of the house together. Ready set go."

"ummmmm???????"---they said with blank stares.

Today was the day we poured a concrete beam around the entire house. This beam ties the whole house together and gives it the most structural integrity. its a long morning with lots of concrete buckets being poured.

This afternoon, we went to the market, where all our fine Mexican goods (including one large purple sombrero) were purchased. The ice cream was tasty too!

tomorrow we put the roof on the house and the last full day of construction.

Please keep the town of Piedras in your prayers. While the water is flowing again, they are mourning the loss of their mayor. He, along with some staff, were flying above the rio grande river surveying the flooding and the plane crashed killing all aboard. The mayor was a friend to CPC. Please keep especially the staff at CPC in your prayers.

We are all safe, have plenty of water, and all are healthy. We are thankful for it all.

¡hasta mañana

felipe y ben

Martes

Ah another day in paradise. Seriously, a cool 90-95 degree partly cloudy day in Piedras Negras.

It's a great week to be here, as are all of them, right? Today we continued to spread the SBC on our final courses of full blocks all the way around the house. Hmmm, the blocks seem heavier today.

While the blocks were setting and SBC was being frosted onto the walls, windows and doors were set into place. Each member of the building family helped secure the windows and doors, a nice touch.

It's really been a great two days of building. Lots of learning about the process from everyone. the "veterans" are great teachers of us all and then empowered us as we moved along. Everyone is working hard and continually asking how they can help! Pray for the energy to continue to flow.

Aside from the house we are building, Piedras Negras, because of some localized flooding has lost some of its water sources. The community will be fine, but today was a challenging day for some as they figured out how to get safe water to their homes. We are fine at the hotel and have plenty of water on the job site, but please pray for the people in community.

hasta mañana

filepe

Monday

"hey I thought it was supposed to be hot here? What give's?"
"well, this isn't normal."
"you see this hurricane came through a few weeks ago and now we still have a ton of rain coming through"
"oh, I thought we were in the desert."
"We are, there is still plenty of sand around."
"don't worry we'll bake ourselves a little bit more tomorrow. Now, put more sun screen on."

so, it rained today. yes it rained. but it was just enough to keep us cool and enough cloud cover to keep the scorching sun off our backs. After slinging a few blocks in the block line. We made it to the 8th course of blocks on the house and but SBC (surface bonding cement) all the way up.

everyone is doing a great job and the group is working very well together. Everyone is learning from everyone else and the job is getting done. Perhaps more awesome is working side by side with the family of 5 who will live in the house we are building.

all is well and keep the prayers coming.

We're here

We made it! we have all arrived safely and are ready for a great week in Piedras Negras. A little more humid today than normal, but still the same old good heat. Tonight we have orientations and get ready for our week. We are looking forward to some great food this evening. Piedras is as welcoming as ever. All the usual smiles and greeting hugs.

Mt. Top 2010

we had a great week at Mountain TOP, in the Cumberland mountains of Tennessee. Traveling outside of Monteagle in Grundy county, we sent 22 people to meet 130 others from all over the country for a week of service camp. Our youth and adults helped with day camp or did service projects around the county. We explored what it meant to have, bring, share, and experience God's hope in all of it.

VBS Day #1

(a couple of our LandLubbers hanging with a child from Sheltering arms as part of a new 4th and 5th grade mission experience)

All ships ahoy! We have set sail around St. Luke's with our annual Vacation Bible School week. So excited for all the youth helping and serving the little ones of this congregation. You are all doing so great! We're so proud of you. Thanks everyone.

Tuesday after VBS let's go to lunch at Moe's. Bring some money. We'll be back to church about 1:30PM

Happy Spring

hey everyone,
hope you are doing well right now. Just an update that we are on from here on out for the school year:
May 2: Kelly and Mike Baby Shower 3:00, youth group 5:30-7:30
May 9: 5:30-7:30 youth
May 16: Youth Sunday!!! no evening, BBQ after church
May 23: Youth and Parent fun extravaganza, summer schedule, and fall information. 5:30-7:30

have a great last few weeks of school. We know you all are busy and hope you have a great spring!

As always let us know if you have any questions.

1. Sunday night: Chastain @ St. Luke's. 6:00PM, bring your family and a picnic while we enjoy offerings of St. Luke's choirs, bands, and great acts. Our youth will be singing some great songs as well. A laid back evening in the courtyard.
2. Wednesday April 21st: Senior recognition dinner. please come to celebrate with our seniors who are graduating. $5 per person ($15 max per family). 6:00PM in the Great Hall (please RSVP to PhilBrown@slpres.org)
3. Sunday evening schedule for the rest of the spring:
April 25: Regular evening 5:30-7:30PM Great Hall
May 2: Regular evening 5:30-7:30 Advisers are cooking dinner
May 9: Regular evening 5:30-7:30
May 16: NO YOUTH, Youth Sunday in the morning, participants meet in sanctuary at 9:30AM. BBQ after church
May 23: Parent and Youth night: End of the Year Party. Summer and fall preview.

One Worship, Middle School night, and Druid Hills night shelter

Hey everyone,
wanted to give you a heads up on what's going on this weekend. It's a little different than usual so here are the details:
1.If you are in high school:
Head to North Atlanta Church of Christ for an evening of great worship with all the youth groups from Dunwoody. It's going to be a blast and free Shane's Rib shack coming your way for dinner. T-shirts are $5 each. meet at North Atlanta Church of Christ at 5:30, starts at 6:00PM. We will be done by 8:00 with dinner and fun.
2.If you are in middle school:
come on to church like normal 5:30-7:30 only, it won't really be like normal because Shannon and Jason and leading youth group for Middle School only! so exciting!
3. If you are in Confirmation:
you will be serving dinner at the Druid Hills night shelter to the men down there! you all have your instructions there. The rest of us will be praying for you all as you serve.
Clear as mud?
As always call me if you have any questions. Can't wait to see you all around this weekend. PRB

Hey everyone, thanks for a great evening last night. Had a great time playing with you. See you wedesday for Feast, and sunday for Sunday school and youth group at 5:30-7:30pm.

Tartan Trot 2010 slide show

Tartan Trot

St. Luke's 4th annual Mission Miles run took place Saturday January 30 at 8:00AM. The streets of Dunwoody were closed down as 500 people ran through their 5k and 10k courses that started on Mt. Vernon Drive. It was a fantastic day for the community and is quickly becoming a premier event for the Dunwoody community. We are a great church in a great community. Thank you everyone who volunteered and ran. It was amazing to see the entire church come together for a great event to support a great cause. Over a hundred people from the church volunteered their time to help put this together. Special thanks are needed for Marty Whitcomb, our race director. She had the vision 4 years ago and it is growing and growing to amazing levels. Julie Pile, Mary Reid, and Mary Martin also deserve special thanks as they put in countless hours in preparation for the Tartan Trot.

Some preliminary numbers:
about 640 registered runner (550 actual runners)
about 75 peachtree qualifiers
around $41,500 gross (this is amazing)
about 80 cakes and pies given away
over 100 awesome volunteers.

All the proceeds will go toward faithful youth mission and outreach in the Atlanta community and around the world.

Thank you again to everyone who participated in this great event. Please see our sponsors on the board at church or at www.tartantrot.com

We want to hear back from you. How did the race go? What do you experience that went well? What could we work on for next year? please send those comments to philbrown@slpres.org. Together we can make this an even greater race for the Dunwoody community.

Grace and peace to you all,
Phil